Giavotella wields power bat against Rangers

Giavotella wields power bat against Rangers

But the Royals second baseman's sixth-inning home run to dead center field in Tuesday night's 6-3 win against Texas -- one that traveled 416 feet from home plate -- might make you think a little differently.

"I've always had decent power. I wouldn't say I have great power, but I'm right around eight, 10 home runs a year. That's kind of my range," Giavotella said. "I got a hold of one last night and put it out of the park."

Giavotella hit 10 home runs this season with Triple-A Omaha, and Tuesday's blast was his first of the year in the big leagues. The 11 combined long balls matched the career high he set last season, when he hit nine in the Minors and two with the Royals.

"It's definitely harder here to hit home runs, because the field's so much bigger than Triple-A. Guys are a lot better, they don't make many mistakes," Giavotella said. "So it's definitely more of a challenge to hit home runs here. Good to get my first one last night."

The 10 home runs with Omaha are the first time Giavotella's reached double digits with a single team in a single season. The second baseman said that 10 is certainly better than nine.

"If it's down to .299 and .300, you definitely want that .300. Nine home runs and 10 home runs, you definitely want double digits," Giavotella said. "It's something that you can't really focus on. You just kind of go out there and let the numbers take care of themselves."